Aggressive skating

Aggressive skating is a stunt-based form of inline skating. Aggressive inline skating is performed on aggressive skates, as opposed to fitness or racing skates. Originally starting on half pipes and spines and moving on to city streets, aggressive skaters attempt tricks such as sliding ("grinding") on the edge of concrete ledges or handrails, jumping, spinning and flipping over stairs or other gaps.

The term aggressive skating is a name only used outside the industry to describe the specific style of inline skating, but not a term most within the sport enjoy hearing or using. Instead, those who practice the sport simply refer to it as "rolling" or "skating". It should be noted that using any variation of term "rollerblade" is, technically, trademark dilution.

In the past, most people inside and out of aggressive skating would have defined it as a sport. But currently the more popular view is that it is a cross between a sport, an art form, and lifestyle.

Proponents of skateboarding tend to look down on aggressive inline skating. The reasons for this vary. It's not uncommon for hostilities to break out between skateboarders and inline skaters that come in direct contact. But it's equally as common to find the two interacting with no problems, to find people who cross over from one to the other, and to see groups of skaters containing both variations.

Types of Aggessive Skating

Aggressive skating is sometimes broken down into to vert skating and street skating, though the latter can have multiple definitions. Vert skating generally refers to skating in a halfpipe, and performing aerial tricks.

Street skating, to some, refers to skating which involves grinds, jumps, and other tricks that do not require special terrain (such as the halfpipe). Others, however, consider waxed rails as "special terrain," and refer to street skating as a smaller subset of tricks (a minority of grinds, stair stalls, stair bashing, and jumps). Holders of this definition argue that street skating in its purest form involves complete mastery of the basic elements, so that a street skater can easily glide through an unpredictable and uncontrolled environment while still making it "look easy." In this respect, street skating is more a form of optimized transportation than showing off.

Park skating is similar to street skating but is done in a skatepark rather than on a city street. Many skateparks include elements meant to recreate a street (stairs, rails, etc.) in addition to the normal ramps and pipes.

USA Roller Sports (USARS), the governing body for roller sports in the United States, has an "aggressive skating" category on its membership application for individuals. In 2005 the category encompassed both "extreme inline skating" and skateboarding and roller derby. In 2006, roller derby became its own category.

History

Inline Aggressive Skating dates way back to when skates were first invented. It is undeniable that someone somewhere will have attempted or accidentally jumped off a kerb or down some steps, without thinking that what they were doing was the start of something big. The use of jumping down steps as apposed to riding down them was probably just considered a quicker way to get down them and to the place the inline skater needed to be, but as this went on, bigger steps would be jumped and hucks and tucks would be introduced to make them look better to the general public.

With the ball rolling like this, people would catch on, and more skates would appear on the market, with reinforced frames/chassis (the part of the skate that holds the wheels in place) to withstand the shock of these steps and kerbs.

After years of this developing, the grind came about in around 1990. It is argued over who invented the grind or who saw it first, but it was most probable that it was inspired by people watching skateboarding grinds. Possible people to have seen or done the first grind are either Chris Edwards, or the lesser known Doug Boyce. It is believed that Doug with his skateboarding background was the first person to grind, but it was Chris Edwards that invented and developed most of today's grinds along with the first 'wave' of aggressive skaters; Jess Dyrenforth, Arlo Eisenberg, Brooke Howard-Smith, Anjie Walton, and Mark Shays.

After years and years of development, skates started to become more accustomed to what aggressive skaters were asking for, with stronger frames, and new areas on the boots and chassis that made grinding more comfortable and solid.

For a detailed description of how aggressive skating and skates have progressed through the years, visit Anti-Rocker.

Aggressive skates

Aggressive skates are a variety of inline skates with some or all of the following characteristics:

Hard outer shell or soft boot style
Smaller wheel diameter, Higher wheel durometer rating
Soul plate
Frames designed specifically for grinding, and landing hard from gaps/drops+wot

The hard outer shell, typically made of high-impact plastic, is for protection of the skater's feet. Typically these skates are exposed to greater impacts than fitness skates, due to the stunts attempted with them. Some companies have been experimenting with soft boot styles for years now though. K2 has been making soft boots for nearly a decade. They have been followed by Remz, Deshi, and now USD with the Legacy hybrid skate.

The smaller wheel diameter and higher durometer rating found on aggressive skates serve multiple purposes. A smaller wheel diameter (usually around 55 mm) decreases the top speed of the skate, due to a decreased moment of inertia. However, this decreased moment of inertia allows the skate to accelerate/decelerate much quicker. A durometer measures the hardness of the wheels, and generally ranges from 72A to 101A. A higher durometer number indicates a harder wheel. Softer wheels are used for gripping and turning, but generally wear out faster and have a decreased top speed (due to rolling resistance). Harder wheels have less shock absorbance and grip, but do not wear out as fast and provide higher top speeds. Recently there has been a return to slightly larger wheels among some skaters, for their speed and increased stability when landing gaps.

It is common to find skaters either using very small middle wheels, commonly about 48 mm and 100+A to allow easier grinding. Other styles include freestyle (no middle wheels) and flat (4 smaller wheels per frame)

The soul plate is typically high-impact plastic placed on the sole of the skate (where the flat part of the foot would be if there were no wheel). It is used during certain kinds of grinds and slides. Additionaly there is a backslide plate placed halfway down the outside of the boot inline with the HBlock in the frame.

Frame design in skates has evolved greatly since the sport's beginnings. Originally there were only stock frames fitted to skates, which were often barely distinguishable from their fitness counterparts, and usually had grind plates added to the inside. Made by companies like CDS Detroit, these plates were lumps of plastic that absorbed friction while grinding when fixed across the middle two wheel bolts. However, over time the companies began producing more robust frames with larger grooves (H-blocks) between the two middle wheels for grinding. Aftermarket companies such as fifty/fifty and Senate started to produce frames which were even more durable, and more importantly, replaceable. These began to replace the process of using grind plates. Eventually, around 2000, a universal frame system (UFS) was developed jointly by several companies and people involved in the industry. This has greatly increased the options for skaters, and now many more companies supply frames to fit individual style and taste.

Most companies produce extra replacement parts for grind pieces on the skate. These pieces (including frames or chassis, soul plates, grind plates, cuffs, buckles, etc.) are manufactured in different colors and materials to suit the skater's preference in style and performance. There are countless aftermarket parts companies for aggressive skating.

Commonly referred parts of the Aggressive skate anatomy:

Shell – the housing that covers the foot.
Cuff – the brace that hugs the ankle and upper ankle.
Soul – a plate or region that is under the boot, above the frame.
Frame – the chassis that houses the wheels.
H-block – the area and material between the middle two wheels
Liner – the inner boot that is made to house the foot.
Backslide plate – the area on the outer part of the foot near to the arc of the foot.
Buckle/Lacing – the type of enclosure on the boot.
Bearing – hardware placed in the wheels to aid.
Wheels – round urethane acting as the contact of the skate to the ground.
Anti-Rocker Wheels - performance replacements of the middle two wheels.

Tricks

Grinds

Grind Variations

Topside - Sole based grinds can be performed topside
Farside - All grinds can be performed farside
Darkside - All grinds can be performed darkside (similar to farside)
Negative - All sole based grinds can be performed 'Negative', using the inside area of the sole plate
Alley-oop - All sole based grinds can be done alley-oop (backwards)
Truespin/Blidside - A variation on the way a skater spins into a trick.
Freestyle - Only used in single foot grinds. The trick is done freestyle if the free foot is not grabbed.

Grabs

Mute
Stale/Stalefish
Lui Kang
T-bone
Abstract (not essentially a grab)
Safety
Method
Big-0
Rocket
Parallel

Flips

Frontflip
Backflip
Berani flip - Frontflip 180
Misty flip - Frontflip 540
Bio
Miller - Backflip using hands
Corkscrew
Flatspin
Viking flip - A tweaked out flatspin 540
McTwist
Brainless - Backflip 540 or 720

Aggressive Skate Manufacturers

Hardware Manufacturers

Champion Aggressive Skaters (by country)

The following is a list of links to champion skaters. Due to a high rate of vanity vandalism, names on the list without a verifiable link will be removed.

Australia

Cesar Mora

List of Australia male skaters on rollerblading.com.au
List of Australia female skaters on rollerblading.com.au
Information on Australian Rollerblading

Brazil

Bulgaria

Canada

Richie Eisler
Corey Lowe
Ryan Roux

France

Ben Jimenez
Jeremy Jimenez
Fabrice Guyount
Matthieu Heinemann
Nicolaus Bellini
Quentin Mandron
Momo Sylla
Remy Meister
Taig Kris

Germany

Dominic Wegener
Benni Harmanus
Bruno Lowe

Japan

Netherlands

Nigeria

Adeleke Fashina

Russia

Evgeniy Leonov Roman Moiseenkov Andrey Zaitsev

Spain

Switzerland

Cedric Eisenring
Jona Messerli
Cosimo Tassone - Best International Skater of the Year 2006 *RFCC All Star Awards
Sandro Brun
Patrick Studer

United Kingdom

Micheal France
Oli Short
Chaz Sands
Jenna Downing
Emma Brown
Albert Hooi
Dan Gamble
James Bottomley, Ashtead

Adam Brown
Adam Davidson
Adrian Wallace
Dani Ives
Frazer Watson
Julian Coulter
Lee Devereux
Nick Lomax
Ricky Murphy
Scott Cullen
Scott Hallows
Si Coburn
Steve Swain
Tom Martin

United States of America

Adam Barr
Alex Broskow^*
Anthony Soto ^*
Arsenio Patterson ^*
Brian Shima - The name behind the highest selling range of pro skate models by [http://www.razorskate.com/ Razors.
Bobby Tateishi - Former member of Skatebarn West team. Now working on a skatepark with other pros somewhere in Idaho
Brian Aragon - Winner of Style of the Year at the 2006 RFCC All Star Awards ^*
Brenton Wheeler - Laying Hammers for Kansas City, Kansas
Brent Hicks - Esco Zoo Up and Comer - Escondido, California
Cameron Card - Member of the Able Hardware team
Charles Dunkle
Chris Cheshire
Chris Farmer - Currently rides for Xsjado,Mindgame Urethane, and Vibralux Denim Project.
Chris Haffey2006 RFCC All Star Awards
Connor O'Brien - Pro for Remedyz and Am for Ground Control and 4x4 Urethane
Dan Barnes
Damien Wilson
Dre Powell
Dustin Latimer - Rides for Xsjado and Mindgame Urethane.
Eric Baily - Valo pro rider and winner of the latest BCSD.
Eric Perkett
Eric Shrijn - Esco Zoo Legend - Escondido, California ^*
Franky Morales
Iain McLeod
Jeph Howard^*
Jeff Stockwell
Josiah Blee -^*
Jon Julio - Owner of Valo Brand Skates
Jon Elliott
Josh Petty^*
Kawika Jarman-^*
Karma Suchan - Founder of the Barnburner competition in Seattle, WA
Laurel Ehret
Lyle Shivak
Mike Currier ^*
Mike "Murda" JohnsonJug.
Mike Lilly
Micah Yeager
Nick Wood
Pancho Barrera
Rachard Johnson
Randy Juarez-^*
Rob Guerrero ^*
Robert Lieavanos
Sean Santamaria
Arthur J. Autz
Selwin Briggs^*^*
Trevor Tylosky ^*
Tommmy Boy Stevenson
Tory Tresseder
Vinny Minton

External links

in alphabetical order :

731 Huge gallery and information aboyut local scene (Czech and Slovak Republic)
AISA DISASTER Aggressive Inline Skating Association DISASTER- Information about the local scene and also what is happening in the Balkans (Bulgaria)
Aggressive Inline Fanatics A site formed in New Zealand includes videos, pictures, first hand amateur interviews with Fabiola Da Silva and Shane Yost and a place to post your own pics.
ASA Inline Skating Aggressive Skate Association.
Be-mag.com Offers an insiders look into the sport. The website includes news, media, and discussions related to aggressive skating.
Daily Bread Magazine The most popular for aggressive inline skaters. Around since very early on in the sport, it is the longest running publication in aggressive inline skating.
Neglected Truth Rollerbladeshop.
RateASkater.com Over 3000 photos and 1000 video clips of aggressive skaters from around the world.
Remz Maker of the popular Haffey skates.
RFCC All Star Tour Yearly tour of all the best skaters from all the various boot companies.
Roll DC Showcasing the best from the Washington DC Area.
rollamag.com Australia's only rollerbalding magazine. Produced locally by local skaters.
Rollernews.com Daily news throughout the world, within Aggressive Skating.
Roller warehouse An online skate store
Rollerwarehouse.com Blog Skate blog with How-To's on skate tricks, listing of skate events, product reviews and other rolling news.
Rolling Edits Messageboard where you can upload and discus rollerblade edits contributed by members of the site.
Rolling Revival A podcast talk show that discusses aggressive skating topics on a weekly basis.
Scum Magazine Premiere Archives of some of the best that skating has to offer.
Skatebarn West Home of Barnburner, a legendary skating competition that celebrates the old times of skating.
Toxboe.net Has in-depth explanations of many inline skating tricks, and the best online aggressive inline skating community.
Trueskater Vert-Skating and Great skate videos
UKSkate.comThe UK's premiere Rollerblader owned and run skate shop, media site and online community.
Xsjado a brand well known for their innovation.

Extreme sports | Roller skating | Patinaje_agresivo

Gourt Home::Gourt :: Aggressive skating